Home Theater Speakers

[icetime]

http://www.preference-audio.com/index.htm

My home theater tech is recommending OEM Systems' Preference-Audio speakers for my basement based home theater. I've searched the web and various forums for any information (good or bad) on what folks think of these speakers without any luck.

Anyone have an opinion on them. Other equipment included in the system:

- Panasonic TH-50PHD8UK 50" plasma with HDMI card (over a fireplace)
- Denon AVR-2807 receiver
- Denon 756 DVD player
- DirecTv HD-DVR (Tivo)

Any assistance or opinion would be greatly appreciated. I'll return the favor with a layman's perspective of the system when it is installed in early May.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

Never heard of them.

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

I've searched the web and various forums for any information (good or bad) on what folks think of these speakers without any luck.

That is never a good sign. Does your tech drive a white van?

 

[Nick250]

I have never heard of them either. icetime, let me make a suggestion. Everyone has a different taste in speakers. It is very subjective. So your job is to find speakers that sound the best to your ears. Nobody else. There is only one way to do that and it is to get in your car, go to every audio dealer you can find and audition every speaker you can that is in your price range. Take along your favorite CD and use the same tracks with each audition. You will be amazed at the completely different sound in like priced speakers. Then you can tell the "tech" what speakers you have chosen, not the other way around. Good luck.

PS also read the speaker reviews and speaker forums here on Audioholics. That will broaden your knowledge as well.

 

[nova]

My opinion,.... go with a known, quality, in-wall from Triad, RBH, or Speakercraft.

 

[sjdgpt]

I have no idea if these are good, bad or ugly speakers.

But I did follow the links to the "parent" company.

The quoted section is on the about section on the parent company's website.

"
OEM SYSTEMS COMPANY
We are pleased to present our line of products to you. They are recommended
by many professional audio/video system designers. We would like to share
with you a little about the background, philosophy, and products that have
earned OEM Systems Company its highly regarded position in the industry.
OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturing. Original equipment manufacturing
is the foundation of our business. It is the area we started in 14 years
ago in Huntington Beach, California. The people of OEM have long histories in
designing and manufacturing loudspeaker products for leading brand name corporations.
Our innovative ideas, commitment to customer satisfaction, and a lot
of hard work have allowed us to grow into the company you see today. Now operating
out of Sparks, Nevada, we are proud of our products and ideals and are
continuing to grow as a trusted and respected business.
Great designs and great materials are the two ingredients that go into great
loudspeakers. Like so many other things, it is just that simple. Well-known
brand name loudspeakers have one additional ingredient: advertising. OEM
does not advertise. We pass this tremendous savings on to our customers and
let the products speak for themselves.
Our speakers use a mix of classic, time-proven and new, cutting-edge technology
& materials, such as butyl rubber & sanoprene cone surrounds, carbon fiber
& polypropylene cones, titanium treated dome tweeters with Ferro fluid cooled
voice coils, and neodymium magnets. Well-engineered crossover networks with
premium quality components & poly switch protection, together with attractive
frame/baffle assemblies and solid mounting systems, yield loudspeaker performance–
value ratios that are second to none.
These performance–value ratios span the OEM line. Our broad selection of
loudspeakers includes many rectangular in-wall & round in-ceiling designs in
various sizes and price ranges. We offer round & rectangular single point stereo
models, which enable full coverage of the left & right channels from a single
speaker. We have several highly innovative, industry precedent-setting subwoofer
designs that mount in walls, floors, and ceilings. We also feature indoor/
outdoor cabinet type speakers, and in-ground and rock landscape speakers.
In addition to loudspeakers, OEM also offers in-wall AM/FM CD and cassette
audio systems, and a comprehensive lineup of wall mounted decorator style volume
controls, switches, and connection plates. Our patent pending HI-LO junction
boxes have the attention of every professional audio/video system designer
in the industry. No home theater system or whole house audio system should
be considered complete without them. For example, the two-gang HI-LO 2 electrical
box enables the light switch and volume control to be mounted together in
one architecturally attractive box behind a two-gang coverplate.
We back our products with a Lifetime Limited Warranty and pride ourselves on
always delivering 100% customer satisfaction. Thank you for taking the time to
look at our products. We know you will be pleased with their quality and value.

"


Lots of words, but do the words mean anything?

"They are recommended by many professional audio/video system designers."

"highly regarded position in the industry"

Who recommends the product?

Usually when I do a google search I find the manufacturer's site, vendors sites, online or print magazine articles and online discussions about the product. For this product line, I found little such information. A few online companies (most of whom are obscure to me) that are selling the product. A couple of discussion threads (mostly on audioholics). One online magazine that mentioned the brand in a discussion about whole house audio. And a whole bunch of nonrelated responses.

All in all the net is rather quite about a brand that is highly regarded and recommended by many professional audio/video system designers.

I would suggest visiting several installation projects that used these speakers before I took the plunge.

 

[icetime]

THANKS...I appreciate it



Thanks to all for the posts and feedback. I like this place already. As promised, I will return the favor by posting the results of my decision and a perspective on how it turned out.

For anyone else out there, I'll check back periodically for new opinions as they are welcome.

 

[jcPanny]

RBH Sound

RBH Sound is another company that has produced OEM cabinets and speakers for years and moved into direct sale of their products. They are highly regaurded and have received great reviews from AH and others. Their product line includes some high end inwall speakers.

If you are still considering OEM systems, ask for a list of their "network" of dealers. Also ask for references from your A/V guy and make a couple calls. If possible, audition one of the HT rooms that your dealer installed with these speakers and let your ears decide.

 

[jcPanny]

OEM Systems speaker prices

Ran across a list of OEM System products when I was on audioreview.com.
http://www.audioreview.com/ASRcrx.aspx?CategoryID=&ManufacturerID=10294&PriceMin=&PriceMax=&MinNumReviews=&MinRating=&Index=0&SortField=&SortFieldOrder=

There are not any reviews posted, but it does list MSRP and has pictures. Based on the $100-$200 price range, these inwalls seam pretty low end as compared to the electronics and video gear you have for the new HT.
Keep in mind that the speakers make the largest contribution to the audio quality of your system, and budget according. Also note, that it is more difficult to properly design and install inwall speakers then bookshelf type. Thus, if your budget is only $200-300/pair then most bookshelf speakers in this price range will outperform comparibly priced inwalls.

Due to to the inwall design challenge, some copanies including Axiom Audio, Paradim, and RBH make on-wall versions of their speakers for a compromise of asthetics and performance.

 

[JohnA]

The Preference Line is a very good quality speaker product; they don't skimp on design or the quality of components that are used. They use Kevlar woofers with real phase plugs, the tweeters are soft dome and are pivoting, and they also have an IR knockout. And from experience they sound very good for the price.

Also JC...you are looking at the low end line not the Preference line, for example the Preference K-602 6-1/2" goes for $379.99

 

[AVRat]

For anybody interested, they are sold at part$express.